La Speranza Ultima
by Kirishtu
Summary: War is cruel. Iruka knows this all too well. When all hope is lost, Iruka is given the chance to save a very special child. Now that Naruto is grown, it's time for him to realize his destiny.
1. Chapter 1

Originally posted on aff 2007-06-27 - 2008-08-23

I. So It Begins

Iruka was no stranger to war. War had taken away his parents, a skirmish between demons and their hunters in which they had just been in the wrong place at the wrong time. Iruka had been five. He could remember sitting beside his parents' bodies, for how long he couldn't remember, but long enough for them to begin to rot and bloat in the sun. Iruka had sat there until the smell finally drove him away, and the five-year-old wandered what had been the battlefield for days until he was found by a demon named Mizuki. Mizuki had taken Iruka from that horrible place and gave him a place – and a reason – to live. Iruka couldn't have been happier, each day filled with a new experience and more lessons from Mizuki. The man taught him everything from reading to writing to herb-lore, and Iruka couldn't bring himself to think of Mizuki as a demon, not when Mizuki took care of him. Iruka spent five more years in Mizuki's care, absorbing what the man – for no demon who was as kind as Mizuki could be thought of as a demon – taught him. He smiled for what seemed to be the first time since his parents' death every time Mizuki brought something new home for Iruka to do. The ten-year-old needed little coercing when Mizuki wanted a whim catered to and Iruka was all too happy to comply with the man's wishes. The night all that changed horribly for the worse was the anniversary of Iruka's parents' demise. The ten-year-old was sleeping, sleeping deep and peaceful in that sleep only children can have when his bedroom door opened.

Mizuki had often checked on him during the night, coming over to pet his head or to soothe after a nightmare. Iruka thought nothing of it, merely rolled over, snuggled his pillow, and dropped back to sleep. He jolted out of slumber when he felt a hand press down where it should not be. Mizuki was pressed against his back, keeping him from going anywhere, and Iruka trembled in fear. It was Mizuki, though, Iruka told himself, Mizuki would never hurt him. Mizuki said nothing to Iruka though, just stroked Iruka's thigh so gently Iruka was almost compelled to open his legs wider, but just almost. Iruka's mind was screaming that this was wrong, that he didn't want this, that Mizuki was his friend and he would never do this.

But when Mizuki's hand wormed its way into his pants to cup his penis – Mizuki had taught him that word – Iruka knew this was horribly real. He cried out and kicked his way out of Mizuki's hold, rolling from the bed to land hard on the floor, scrabbling to his feet and bolting away from the bed and Mizuki. When he looked up at the man – no, demon – Mizuki's face was twisted in a horrible mask of rage.

"Now, now, Iruka," Mizuki hissed, spacing out each syllable of Iruka's name as he approached the boy, "that's no way to treat the one who saved your life."

"I don't want it!" Iruka cried in return, his small body trembling, "I don't want you touching me!"

The laugh Mizuki let out hurt Iruka, the little boy looking down in shame, and when he looked up, Mizuki's face was only inches from his own.

"You're too young to know what you want, Iruka." Mizuki said so sweetly as his fingertips stroked Iruka's face, before that sweet smile turned into a snarl and those fingers wrapped around Iruka's throat, lifting the boy off his feet as Mizuki rose to his full height. He slammed the boy into the wall and put his face dangerously close to Iruka's, their lips touching, before he tossed the ten-year-old back onto the bed.

"Mizuki, please," Iruka tried to whimper, but no sound came out, only a cough that faded into a frightened cry when Mizuki covered him again.

"You'll learn to like it, my little Iruka," Mizuki whispered in that loving – deceiving – voice that Iruka had so dearly loved.

When Mizuki descended for a kiss, Iruka lashed out with his fists and feet, catching the demon off guard. Scant few precious minutes were earned by that rebellion, though, and Iruka used them in the only way he knew how. He squirmed from beneath Mizuki, made a run for the bedroom door, and was out into the hall before the blonde-haired demon recovered enough to give chase. Iruka almost made it to the front door before Mizuki caught him roughly by the shoulders. He was given a rough shake to disorient him, but Iruka didn't want to go back to the bedroom where he would be trapped. His teeth sank into Mizuki's hand when the man tried to cover his mouth, his legs kicking. Mizuki's free hand came across his face in a vicious slap; Iruka felt nails break the skin on his face, felt warm blood slipping down. The pain was pushed aside, no, used to fuel his determination to get away. Iruka spat in Mizuki's eyes – blood and spit and fury – and the demon dropped him. Iruka landed hard – he thought he felt something crack – but he bolted for the door, flung it open and bolted into the night, not stopping until the sun rose above the trees and only then he stopped just long enough to wash his face. It stung, the wound across his nose and cheeks, deep and red and angry. He saw it in his reflection on the stream's water and he dropped to his knees at the water's edge. Iruka began to cry, even though the salt of his tears stung his wound.

Mizuki had betrayed him. Mizuki, the man – demon – he had lived with for five whole years, the demon he had loved like an older brother. Mizuki had hurt him, physically and emotionally, and the ten-year-old knew not how to handle such hurt. So he cried until he could no longer cry, leaving only an emotionless calm that he used to propel himself to his feet and move on. The further he was from Mizuki, the less he would have to worry about his safety.

But even walking alone, Iruka had to keep care of where he went. Even though the war was officially over – Mizuki had told him that – demon hunters still sought out demons to kill, because of a silly prophecy that a storyteller had made up. Still, the demon-hunters believed it, believed that one day the bridge between humans and demons would finally be built and all would live in peace with one another. Iruka knew the prophecy too, silly as it was, but he knew it was just as silly to kill all demons just to prevent it from coming true.

The only demon that deserved to die was Mizuki.

Iruka trembled at the thought and quickly recanted it. Mizuki only deserved to be punished, not killed. Just punished.

The ten-year-old just kept walking, following the road only because he didn't know where else to go. He wasn't even sure how he could survive, having been cared for by Mizuki for a long time. Somehow, though, he managed and spent a year and a half wandering, stealing or foraging food when he was able to. He always hid whenever a human or – as he feared – a demon passed him on the road, waiting for hours before he moved on. He was so tired, tired of running and hiding and he wasn't even sure if he remembered how to speak, he'd been silent for so long.

On the eve of his twelfth birthday, Iruka was driven under the cover of trees by a harsh thunderstorm, his small body battered by fierce winds and hardened raindrops. He kept walking, now so far from the road he had no hope of ever finding it again. He began to cry, not knowing which wetness on his face were tears or rain. He didn't want to keep going, but Iruka forced himself to, the rain hardly lessening even as Iruka found shelter in a cradle of tree roots, the ground relatively dry. He curled around himself to try and keep warm, shivering as thunder and lightning pounded in a horrible, beautiful cacophony of a symphony. Iruka fell asleep beneath the roots, not even noticing when strong but old hands lifted him up and wrapped him in a blanket, carrying him away from that little haven of necessity.


	2. Chapter 2

II. Konoha

Iruka woke, curled up beneath several layers of blankets, warm in their fluffy shelter. He blinked several times, clearing sleep from his doe brown eyes as he sat up, staring at the wooden walls that surrounded his little bed. The twelve-year-old panicked, fearing that Mizuki had found him, and kicked the blankets away, scrambling out of bed and making a dash for the curtain that posed as a door, going through and running for what had to be the front of the house. The brunette boy burst out of the house and paused, eyes wide at the sight before him. People bustled about, laughing and talking to one another, children Iruka's age running with each other, playing games that were strange to Iruka. The villagers took no notice of the stunned boy, standing in the threshold of the small house that matched all the other houses in the clearing, completing a large, staggered ring, for between some houses rested a garden or two, or a pen for animals.

Iruka tensed when he felt a presence behind him, slowly turning to stare at the old man who towered over him. The pair said nothing to each other, Iruka merely stepping aside to let the man pass. He did so, even closed the door behind him, but he didn't move away from the boy. Instead, the man smiled, disarming Iruka enough to let the man touch him on his shoulder and draw him close, a comforting embrace that confused Iruka even more. The man eventually crouched before the boy and studied him for a while before speaking.

"My name is Sarutobi," the old man said, smiling that disarming smile, "what is your name?"

"U-umino Iruka," Iruka stuttered, whispered, not even believing he had heard himself speak, his voice so quiet and rusty. Sarutobi smiled though and rose, patting Iruka's head, fingers tangling in the long strands that nearly reached Iruka's shoulders.

"Well, Umino Iruka, welcome to Konoha."

Iruka looked around at the village, reddening when he saw the villagers staring at him. Prudently, he stepped behind Sarutobi and blushed even more at the man's hearty laugh. When the villagers moved on with their lives, Iruka looked up at Sarutobi and returned with hesitance the smile the old man gave him.

"Come with me, Iruka-kun," Sarutobi said. "It's time we get you cleaned up."

Sarutobi waited for Iruka to follow him before he led the boy through Konoha's streets, taking great care that he didn't alarm the boy in any way. Iruka had been in bad shape when Sarutobi had found him, starved and dirty and injured, no doubt abused by a caretaker. Sarutobi didn't know how right he was. Iruka had slept for two weeks before today, watched over by the women of the village when Sarutobi couldn't, his injures tended and healed, except for the grievous wound on his face. It had already scarred, marring the boy's pretty face, but it didn't make him ugly. It just heightened the fact this child had survived so much at his young age.

He led Iruka into the public bathhouse and turned to the boy with a smile. Iruka only stared back and said nothing, looking at the empty, steaming water.

"Just get cleaned up, all right, Iruka?" Sarutobi offered gently, moving to get towels and soap for the child. He kept his back turned until he heard Iruka slip into the water, turning back to the boy with the objects, setting them beside the edge of the bath for Iruka's use.

"Sarutobi-san?" Iruka asked softly, "You won't… go anywhere, will you?"

Sarutobi blinked and shook his head. "No, I won't. Just wash your hair and I'll get you some new things to wear. I won't be far."

Iruka nodded and turned away to splash in the warm water before he finally reached for a rag and the soap. Sarutobi smiled and left Iruka alone, fetching fresh clothes for the boy to wear and returning a short while later, smiling at the boy who now stood wrapped in a towel at the edge of the bath.

"Iruka," Sarutobi called to announce his presence to the twelve-year-old, the boy turning to look up at the elder man. Sarutobi offered the clothes to the child and then gave Iruka his privacy as the boy dressed.

Iruka tugged on Sarutobi's back, the man turning around to smile at the boy. Iruka, clean Iruka, stared up at him, doe brown eyes hesitant but slowly learning to trust. Sarutobi took Iruka's hand and led him out of the baths, taking the boy covered the village and showing him everything.

This was how it was every day, Sarutobi teaching Iruka something new, always taking care not to alarm the boy. He was amazed at the twelve-year-old's transformation over the next months, Iruka befriending other children his age and playing, allowing himself to be petted and groomed by the village women, most of that time leaving Iruka's hair shorter than before and often in a tail. But then, Iruka began to grow sullen again, leaving Sarutobi confused, since Iruka had been making such wonderful progress in leaving the house on his own and going to play. Now all Iruka did was wander around the woods, often not coming home until dusk. Sarutobi didn't want to ask, in case Iruka needed this to heal, but he was becoming increasingly worried, especially after Iruka turned fourteen and asked to have his own home on the outskirts of the village.

Sarutobi watched Iruka work on his evolving house with the older men of the village, watched the boy disappear and reappear, and when the house was finished, Sarutobi finally approached the boy he had cared for now about three years and paused, hearing the beautiful koto music on the wind. He looked toward Iruka, watching the boy listen to the koto music on the wind.

Perhaps he shouldn't worry so, not if the Lord of the forest deigned to play while Iruka was in earshot.


	3. Chapter 3

III. The Death of Music

Iruka stared at the box before him, wide-eyed at the thought of anyone giving him a present for his birthday. He couldn't even remember when his birthday was anymore, but it was still a shock, even after Sarutobi had celebrated his birthday since he had been found. Iruka looked up at the elderly man and gave a hesitant smile before he opened the box, revealing a dark red silk kimono, unpatterned but still just as beautiful.

Sarutobi patted Iruka's shoulder, smiling at the sixteen-year-old. "It used to belong to a friend of mine, but I think it's better suited for you, Iruka,"

The boy could think of nothing to say and instead bowed his head, trying not to cry. Sarutobi could only smile as Iruka turned and hugged him, as much a thank you as the old man would get from him. Sarutobi finally stepped back when Iruka let go, watching the boy pull the kimono from the box and try it on. Sarutobi let yet another smile show, recognizing the beauty of Iruka, knowing that the boy would have great things ahead of him.

He paused then, hearing the music on the wind. Iruka heard it too, and the kimono was pulled off, folded reverently and placed back in its box before Iruka bolted from Sarutobi's house and out of the village into the woods. Sarutobi watched him go, smiling as Iruka disappeared into the trees, following that music as he had done every day since it began to appear. Sarutobi shook his head and moved to return inside to father up Iruka's gift. He paused though, at a shout from one of his neighbours, eyes growing wide at the sight of hunters trampling through the village, weapons drawn and ready. They passed him without a glance and vanished into the trees, in the same direction Iruka had just run.

When the emerald leaves turned brown against the heat of the roaring fire, Sarutobi could only pray for Iruka's safety as he and the other villagers in Konoha rushed to protect their small community.

Iruka had followed the music as far as he could before everything went silent, giving the boy a sense of wrongness. Had he gone too far? Iruka looked around, confused, out in the open and vulnerable. Instinctively he crouched and crept into the cover of low bushes, doe brown eyes growing wide at the sight of men on horseback and on foot, shivering as memories he hoped to forget came bubbling up again. They were hunters, demon hunters, and they were here again. One struck steel and flint together, the sparks fanned into flames, and the forest was soon on fire. Iruka felt tears pricking his eyes and fought not to make any noise. The hunters laughed and joked around as the flames grew, and Iruka stayed where he was, hidden, frozen.

The music began again and the hunters disappeared.

Iruka crept from his hiding place and stared at the destruction being wrought. The music kept playing, as if in defiance to the fire and the hunters, and Iruka followed it, hopeless as it was. He felt the forest come to life around him, and though he couldn't see anything alive, he knew everything was fleeing like he should be. He refused to run, not now, crying out as the burning branches came down around him. The sixteen-year-old bolted then, running for his life, not watching where he put his feet. His sandal caught a tree root, his world up-ended as he flew head over heels into a deep pool of murky water. He came up, gasping for air and scrabbling for purchase on the sandy floor. How wide his eyes became then, seeing the music-maker, a unearthly beautiful man with deep black eyes so full of fire, a koto in his hands, playing idly as though the forest wasn't burning around him. Nine tails curled around him, each twitching in time to the music, even as those dark eyes stared at him. Iruka swallowed and lowered his eyes, earning a barking laugh.

"Get out, little one. Get out and run, for they are coming." The kitsune smiled even as Iruka did as he was told, though he protested leaving. "There's nothing you can do. Run now, little one."

Somehow, Iruka did run, but he turned back, staring as the hunters surrounded the koto-playing man. Weapons slammed into that vulnerable body, but he kept playing, smiling right at Iruka, still telling him to run. And then the human visage fell away, a monstrous fox demon snarling and snapping at the humans even as his lifeblood splattered the earth below him. Iruka watched it all, staring as tears fell down his face, mourning the kitsune's impending death. The kitsune howled, flames the hunters had set swirling in around the demon, around the few hunters left alive, around Iruka, creating one giant fireball. That ball exploded, sending trees – and the humans – flying, uprooted by the force of the magic. Iruka slammed hard into the earth and rolled, managing somehow to get to his knees, staring dazedly around, focusing on the fox demon that lay amidst the destruction, quietly breathing.

Those dark eyes fell on Iruka, the fox demon giving the brunette a grin not meant for a human face. He was alive, barely, and as he struggled to his feet, Kyuubi saw his death reflected in Iruka's pretty brown eyes. The fox demon let his human form fade to shield Iruka from the hunter's view, to protect the child who had wandered his forest listening to his music, and Kyuubi let out one final howl before the sword found his throat, taking the foolish hunter with him to the Underworld. Kyuubi watched Iruka begin to cry and only smiled, and with his last few precious moments of life bade Iruka to flee, finally getting the boy to run back to the safety of Konoha.

When the rest of the hunters came upon the scene of death, only the bodies of their comrades were strewn about, Kyuubi's form already a part of the earth. The only sign of his passing was the stain of blood on the earth, a stain that would never leave, no matter how many times the hunters tossed dirt over the mess. For remembrance, that stain was, and for the young demon who stood in the shadows watching, a reminder.


	4. Chapter 4

IV. Child

How far he had run, he didn't know, but his time was coming to an end. His blood fed the earth, just as his mate's did. How brave Kyuubi had been, staying behind to allow his court and his mate to escape. Still, the hunters had found him, running with his arms burdened by his and Kyuubi's newborn kit. They had ruined his body, stealing precious moments off his life. He would die, and soon, before he got his son to safety. He was growing cold, his limbs growing heavy. He stumbled and tucked his son against his chest before he tumbled forward, fetching up hard against a half-burned tree. Though the baby began to wail at the rough treatment, he couldn't hush his son, too weak to do more than breathe.

A branch cracked and he looked up, waiting for his death to appear.

Instead, a brunette boy appeared from the ruined underbrush, sopping wet and covered in ashes. His eyes grew wide at the sight of the bloody man, but the man only smiled, recognizing the protective aura surrounding the child.

"Your name?" he whispered, not even sure if the boy heard him. He smiled to himself when the boy came closer, staring at the man and the state he was in.

"Umino Iruka," the boy whispered back, crouching down before him.

"Umino Iruka," the man repeated, taking a moment to breathe before he moved forward, just a bit, transferring the whimpering bundle to Iruka's arms. He fell back against the tree, blood flowing freely now that he had given his child over to one who would raise him properly. He could hear little Iruka's voice calling him, trying to bring him back to the world of the living. He only smiled, peacefully, accepting his fate of death, even as he felt the pull of life, the gift Iruka so selflessly offered him. He refused.

Iruka whimpered, balancing the infant in his arms as he shook the dead man, trying to wake him, even though he knew it was futile. Old memories were replacing these scenes, and Iruka began to cry, his sobs echoed by the baby in his arms. It was dark when Iruka finished burying the dead man, taking only the man's necklace to slip around the baby's wrist, picking up the child to carry him away from this horrible place. The brunette kept the infant close to his chest, soothing the little blonde baby to sleep as he walked, somehow finding his way back to Konoha.

"Iruka!"

Iruka looked up, staring dazedly at Sarutobi, watching the man's eyes go wide at the sight of the baby in Iruka's arms. Iruka said nothing, only moved closer to the elderly man, pressing his head to Sarutobi's shoulder. Sarutobi hugged Iruka, taking care not to hurt the sleeping infant, and once Iruka pulled away, Sarutobi walked Iruka to his home, offering to watch the sleeping babe while Iruka cleaned himself up.

Reluctantly, and with much promising by Sarutobi, Iruka gave the baby to the old man and disappeared into the back rooms of his home, leaving Sarutobi time to study the child. Patchwork blonde tufts covered the baby's head, whisker-like scars on his cherubic face, and between his legs – besides what defined the child as being male – was a rusty red, fluffy tail.

Sarutobi sucked in a breath when he saw that tail and had half a mind to slit the child's throat and tell Iruka the baby had time in his sleep. Iruka would believe him, too, and that alone stayed Sarutobi's hand. He loved Iruka as she had loved another he had raised and watched leave, no doubt the mother of this special child. He looked up when Iruka came back into the room and lifted the baby into his arms, covering him in a clean warm blanket.

"You mean to keep him," Sarutobi didn't ask, more a statement.

"Why shouldn't I?" Iruka replied, watching the sleeping infant in his arms.

"You know if they discover he is alive, they'll come back." Sarutobi said. "They'll kill you and him."

"Would you protect us?"

Sarutobi sighed. "I would. The Lord protected us, it's the least I can do for his child,"

"Yet you were going to kill him," Iruka whispered, staring at Sarutobi, almost accusatory though Sarutobi knew Iruka would never accuse him of anything.

"To protect Konoha."

"To protect yourself."

"You're too young to be so cynical."

Iruka just looked at Sarutobi and allowed the old man to see the years of scars on his soul through those doe brown eyes. Swallowing, the old man just nodded and rose to leave Iruka's sanctuary.

"If you need anything, Iruka, just let me know."

Some of the warmth returned to the young boy's eyes. "I will."

Sarutobi fled before Iruka could see the tears forming in the old man's eyes. Sarutobi didn't know the extent of the abuse Iruka had survived through, but he knew it had been enough to make the boy withdraw from the world around him. The scar across his nose had certainly something to do with Iruka's perspective on the world, but Sarutobi had never pressed, figuring the boy would tell him when he was ready.

But now Sarutobi wondered if Iruka would ever tell him. Certainly, he wondered if Iruka would be different now that he had a babe to look after. Perhaps it would be a good influence on Iruka to let him keep the baby. The old man shook his head and looked back to the tails of smoke curling up from the forest and said a soft prayer before returning to his home for the night, intending to get right to sleep.

Iruka, on the other hand, was having a sleepless night.

He knew nothing of taking care of a baby, but he did his best. He allowed the infant to drink some of the goat's milk Iruka had bought two mornings ago and burped the child, working hard to learn each of the baby's sounds. He learned very fast how to make a diaper and ended up using towels to cover the infant's rump.

"You would think this amusing," Iruka murmured as the infant giggled and kicked at him, small fist curling around Iruka's index finger. Eventually, the baby yawned and whined to be picked up, tiny tail flicking here and there until his demand was met. Iruka cradled the baby in his arms, feeling his heart warm just watching the cherubic little face scrunch up in dreams. He stroked the baby's scarred cheeks and pressed a soft kiss to his forehead.

"Now what should I name you?"


	5. Chapter 5

V. Naruto

"Uzumaki Naruto! Get back here right this instant!"

Cackling, the ten-year-old bolted from the chicken coop, feathers stuck in hair and fur. The chickens squawked and cried at his passing, and the boy barely dodged the rolling pin lodged at his head. He hit the corner, spun around and stuck his tongue out at the elderly woman before darting off again.

In a few minutes, the story would reach his big brother and Naruto would be hauled back here to apologize for whatever mischief he'd caused. It was routine in Konoha, though, ever since the blonde boy figured out he could walk on two feet. Once he'd realized he could leave the safety of Iruka's side, Naruto had gone and had gotten himself in as much trouble as he could. Grinning, Naruto leapt a fence and tumbled head over heels into a garden, popping up again to keep running.

He hit Iruka's shins and both went down hard.

"Iruka!" Naruto cried, fur of his tail standing on end at the sight of his big brother lying motionless before him. The boy rolled to his feet and pounced on the brunette, squealing as arms came around him, trapping him to Iruka's chest.

"You went and terrorized Akiko-san's chickens again, didn't you?" The brunette asked, hugging the blonde tight before letting him go, watching the ten-year-old hurry to pick up Iruka's dropped basket. That rusty tail went between the boy's legs at the sound of the stern voice.

"I couldn't help it. They were looking so tasty…"

"Please tell me you didn't eat one."

Naruto gave Iruka a wide-eyed innocent stare and giggled when the man gave a groan. "Of course I didn't eat one. They're too alive."

"Typically your food is alive before you eat it."

"Yeah, but I'm not the one who has to kill it."

Iruka set his hand on Naruto's head and sighed, smiling. "I don't know what I'm going to do with you."

"You're gonna take me back to Akiko-san's and make me apologize." Naruto whined.

"Of course I am." Iruka said sternly. "You can't go around doing things like that without consequences."

Naruto made a pouty face and stuck his tongue out at his big brother, frowning when the older man replied in kind. 'Harrumph'-ing, Naruto lifted the basket up onto his head and followed Iruka through the streets back to Akiko's house, tail tucked between his legs the entire way. He always hated apologies, but Iruka made him for a reason. What reason, Naruto wasn't sure yet, but he was confident he'd figure it out.

After apologizing to the elderly woman – and Iruka promising Naruto would never, ever do it again – the pair began to slow walk home. Naruto loved walking home with Iruka, because Iruka would always stop and listen to the wind and he would tell Naruto stories of the great Lord of the forest that used to live in these very woods. Since the other kids in Konoha avoided Naruto like the plague, Naruto always enjoyed playing by himself, pretending he was the Lord of the forest and he would always be around to protect Iruka.

"Naruto, you're not listening to me," Iruka called gently. The boy paused in mid-step and slowly turned to face the man he'd lived with for ten years. The blonde gave a sheepish smile and trotted back to his brother, electric blue turning up to the cerulean sky that could be seen between the trees. Iruka lifted an arm and pointed. "See it now?"

"I see a bird," Naruto said in reply. "It's a big bird."

Iruka smiled a little and looked down at the boy he'd come to love so much. "Not that, little twit. Up there, in the branches."  
Naruto's eyes darkened at Iruka's name calling, but peered harder into the branches of the trees above his head. Then he saw it, grinning widely. Using his claws, the ten-year-old scrambled up the tree and grabbed the pinecone, taking a wild leap and falling to land in Iruka's arms. He held up his prize, grinning.

Naruto loved pinecones. When rolled in molasses and nuts they attracted all sorts of birds that he could spend hours chasing. Iruka hugged his little brother tight before setting him down and picking up the discarded basket, taking Naruto's hand as they walked home.

Naruto hurried into their cabin to set the pinecone beside the others he'd collected, moving to help Iruka with his basket and bouncing with joy as he watched Iruka pull out the ingredients for miso ramen. His energy, though, wasn't going to be able to be contained for much longer.

"Naruto," Iruka said, "why don't you play outside until I have dinner ready?"

"But I wanna help."

"When you're older."

"That's what you said last night," Naruto groused and grinned when Iruka handed him a little piece of naruto noodle to nibble on. Pleased, at least a little bit, the blonde boy ran outside to unleash his energy on those who could take it: the trees.  
He'd always loved the forest without being able to explain why. He just did. Iruka loved the forest too, but Naruto couldn't understand why. Iruka couldn't hear the trees the way Naruto could and every time Naruto tried to tell Iruka what the trees were saying, the man would always get so upset. So Naruto had stopped telling Iruka, but it hadn't stopped him from talking to the trees. He understood that Iruka was only trying to protect him. All big brothers tried to protect their little brothers, after all. But Naruto never could figure out why he and Iruka were so different from the rest of the villagers. Grandpa-Sarutobi always told Naruto he was just special. Special how? For having a tail? What did that mean, anyway?

The ten-year-old sighed and looked back to the cabin he'd grown up in. The trees were saying it was time to leave now that he was old enough to take care of himself. But he didn't want to leave Iruka. Iruka was like Naruto; he had no one. If Naruto left, what would happen to Iruka? Would he cry again?

The boy frowned, kicking at a few pebbles. Naruto had gotten so angry at Iruka once when he was seven and he'd run away. He hadn't gone far, just to the edge of the wheat fields where he was sure Iruka would find him, and had only been missing for a few hours at most. Iruka had been hysterical, looking everywhere for Naruto, and when the boy finally returned at the behest (and bribing) of Grandpa-Sarutobi, he'd been so startled to see Iruka's face red and his eyes filled with tears that he ran right up to the man and clung tight to him.

Naruto never wanted to see Iruka cry again.

But something bad was coming this way, the trees said. Something bad that you can't protect him from if you stay.

"I'm gonna stay," Naruto said with a finality that none would disobey. "I'm going to stay with Iruka!"

"I'm afraid, prince, I can't allow that."


	6. Chapter 6

VI. Flight

Iruka looked up from the pot of boiling water to watch the sunset that bathed the kitchen red and orange through the glass of the window. He shivered and hurried to put the noodles in to cook before moving to the door, opening it to call for Naruto. The boy was nowhere to be seen outside the home, not in the yard or behind the house. For a moment, Iruka panicked, thinking something bad might have happened to the child, but he tamped down the fear and simply moved from the house to the edge of the forest, cupping his hands around his mouth.

"Naruto! It's time to come in! Naruto!"

Silence met his words, like he expected. Then the wind started up, whipping Iruka's ponytail around into his face. Iruka raised his hand to shield his eyes, peering into the dark of the wood. The wind bore an ill omen that made spiders crawl up and down Iruka's spine, and the brunette took one step toward the dark line of trees.

Naruto collided with him before he'd even put his foot down, and both tumbled into the grass in a pile of limbs. Naruto rolled as Iruka sat up, prudently hiding behind the elder man, shaking and whimpering as he looked past Iruka into the dark of the forest. The brunette got to his feet, seeing nothing, and turned on Naruto, picking him up and placing him on his feet.

"What's got you so upset?" Iruka asked, moving to brush away a blade of grass on Naruto's cheek.

His wrist was caught in a vice grip that hurt.

Doe brown eyes went wide as he saw the owner of that hand, that mop of silver hair, those piercing blue and red eyes. It was the silver hair that made Iruka freeze. When that grip didn't lessen, everything blanked for the young man. He didn't hear Naruto's cries, he didn't hear the words the man spoke; he just reacted. He threw a hard right hook at the man, catching the surprised stranger on the jaw. He went down hard, but Iruka wasn't done with him. He picked up his foot to stomp on the man's skull and suddenly found himself up ended, on his stomach in the grass with his ankle twisted painfully in an inhuman grip.

The demon leaned close to his ear, hissing. "Finished?"

Iruka elbowed him in the cheekbone and rolled to his back, kicking at the silver-haired demon just to get him away. Then Naruto was between them, arms out to his sides as if his small body would shield Iruka from the demon's wrath. The blonde boy spoke one word and the demon froze, relaxing, nodding. Naruto turned to Iruka, smiling sheepishly.

"Are you all right, Iruka-nii?"

Iruka blinked a few times. "All right? You think bringing him here, scaring me like that, makes me all right?!"

Naruto's grin lessened. "I'm sorry."

"Prince," the silver haired demon said almost impatiently, "say your good-byes. We must be going now."

Iruka was on his feet in an instant, grabbing Naruto's shoulder and putting a hand over his mouth to shut him up. "What do you mean, 'going'?"

"There's nothing you can do, human." The silver one sneered. "It's time for him to lead us now."

"He's just a boy!" Iruka said hotly. "Besides, I'm his guardian and I say he stays."

"He's already given me his word."

"Words can be broken."

The demon's lips curled into a snarl and he stepped toward Iruka, reaching out to grab his throat. Naruto broke free of Iruka's grip at that moment and shoved the demon back, fur of his tail standing on end, that small body nearly vibrating with anger.

"Never EVER lay a hand on Iruka!" The small blonde yelled. "I told you I wasn't going anywhere without Iruka!"

"He'll never be able to keep up, Prince," The silver demon stated calmly, hands on his hips. "He's only human."

"He's MY human," Naruto stated. He looked up toward Iruka, tail twitching back and forth slowly. "Right?"

Iruka slowly let out a breath. "Right."

"Besides, ramen is for dinner and I don't wanna waste it."

Iruka shared the silver-haired demon's groan of annoyance. The brunette reached out then to ruffle Naruto's hair, sighing softly, before looking up at the silver-haired demon. There was some silent understanding reached then, some unspoken truce, but Iruka wasn't too inclined of having another demon – especially a silver-haired demon – anywhere close to him.

"Kakashi," Naruto began slowly, "why don't you wait outside?"

The silver-haired demon – Kakashi – just stared at the small boy for a long while before slowly nodding. Naruto led Iruka inside their home then, prancing around the kitchen and working to make Iruka smile. It wasn't hard, not with Kakashi out of view, and soon Iruka was laughing right along with Naruto, cheerful throughout dinner. Only after Naruto had gone to his room to pack his things did Iruka move to take a bowl out to the sentinel, standing at arm's length to offer the soup.

Kakashi looked at him, the bowl, and back to him, making a snort of disdain. Iruka flushed bright red. "If you don't want it, you could just say so!"

In one smooth motion, faster than Iruka's eyes could follow, the distance between them was suddenly gone, Kakashi taking the bowl from his hands and staring down into wide doe brown eyes. "What does he see in you? Why does he want to protect you?"

"Who?" Iruka asked hotly. "Naruto?"

"Of course Naruto," the demon replied in a sarcastic, nasty tone. Iruka wanted to strike him.

"It couldn't be that I was chosen to raise him, could it?" Iruka asked, feigning an innocent tone to cover up the venom in his words. The way the demon twitched told the brunette that he still heard the poison. "That I and this village is all he's known for his ten years? Why would he go with you, anyway?"

"The Prince is needed to lead his people on an exodus from these lands. We thought if enough of us died the price would be enough to stay the human's thirst for blood. But we were wrong." Kakashi eyed Iruka suspiciously, looking at the human to the bowl and back to Iruka.

"I didn't poison it," Iruka said, feeling his cheeks heat from the hurt of the silent accusation.

Kakashi said nothing and slurped it. Took a moment to savour – or test to make sure Iruka wasn't lying – and finished it off, dropping the bowl to the ground. Iruka winced upon hearing it shatter and fled within the cabin. He found Naruto picking over toys and smiled at the innocence of him. The smile was short-lived though, as Iruka realized the implications of what Kakashi had told him. If Iruka stayed with Naruto, he would just slow them down. He would be that third wheel, the weakest, and he would force the other two to slow their pace to help him. He moved then, almost automatically, and knelt beside Naruto, hugging the boy close.

"I won't leave you behind, Iruka," Naruto swore against his brother's ear. "I promised Grandpa-Sarutobi that I wouldn't leave you behind."

"Naruto, I…"

Naruto's tail bristled suddenly and then he and Iruka were covered by Kakashi's body, the man forcing them down to the floor as the screams started. Iruka froze; it was instinct. But Naruto's small hand clutching his own forced him to get out from under Kakashi, pulling Naruto up into his arms as he went, tugging on Kakashi to get the man to move. Obviously too slow for the silver-haired demon's liking, Iruka suddenly found himself devoid of Naruto and tossed over Kakashi's shoulders like a sack of grain. Despite his protests, Kakashi just ran with Naruto at his side and disappeared into the dark woods. Iruka's last sight was of the horizon turning orange with fire.


	7. Chapter 7

VII. Hatred

With the villagers rounded up and several of his hunters holding swords to the throats of the children, Mizuki was certain he'd have no problem in getting the information he wanted. How ironic it was that he was now helping these pitiful creatures in their endeavor instead of fighting against them. Sixteen years after his precious Iruka had betrayed him and run from him, here he was, in the last place Iruka had been seen. And he wouldn't have gotten this far had not those stupid hunters come to call. Of course, most were dead now, but the point was he was going to lead them to the Gathering in exchange for his life and Iruka.  
He couldn't help the grin at how quickly the humans were to condemn one of their own.

Mizuki strode forward, eyeing the women who might serve him tonight, aware of every single glare turned on him. But he found his target and pulled the old man from the crowd, forcing him to the forefront and therefore made him the scapegoat for this little trip. Mizuki began to circle the old man, smelling all too clearly Iruka's scent on those old bones. Had this geezer taken advantage of Mizuki's Iruka? Had he touched that soft flesh, ruined that pristine body? Mizuki curbed his anger enough so that when he turned to face the old man, all he had to do was bow and grin to get that wonderful stench of fear.

"Where is he?" Mizuki crooned.

"Where is who?" the old man asked.

"You know who. Iruka. Where is he?"

The old man shrugged. "I haven't seen Iruka all day."

There was a murmur in the captives, and a small voice piped up asking who Iruka was. Mizuki shook his head to hide his anger and suddenly lashed out, nails tearing a hole in the old man's throat. The human's eyes widened, hand gripping his throat as blood bubbled between his fingers, eyes glaring at the demon.

"I won't ask again." Mizuki said as he calmly wiped blood from his fingers. "Where is Iruka?"

"Gone!" The old man choked. "He's gone. You'll never find him, not now, not when he's protected by the Prince!"

Mizuki's eyebrow rose. "Prince?"

The old man's lips drew into a thin line, refusing to say anything more. Mizuki just looked over at one of his hunters and a mother screamed in horror as her girl's throat was suddenly missing. Mizuki's gaze fell back onto the old man's, head tilting.

"How many more have to die, old man? Just answer my question."

The old man trembled and looked away, frowning. "Ten years ago you hunters came here, and destroyed our forest. You killed the Lord of the Forest, the great Kyuubi, but you failed to kill his son."

For a moment Mizuki didn't know what to think. The initial joy of hearing that at least one of the kitsune line still lived was ripped callously away by the realization the Exodus call had come BECAUSE one of the kitsune line still lived. "And what did you do with the babe?"

"Iruka raised him."

Which meant Iruka was with him now. Mizuki let out a snarl and swung at the old man's face, ripping it clean off as he whirled on the hunters. One wave of his hand had the cruel humans tearing into their victims, and Mizuki found he liked the screams of panic and fear. They went well with the roaring anger within him.

Kakashi watched Iruka sleep curled around the Prince Naruto like a mother would. Perhaps Kakashi had been in the wrong when he suggested leaving Iruka behind. The Prince certainly wouldn't have cooperated and that smile he wore day after day would never be present on his cherubic face. And Iruka… Iruka would most likely be dead. Kakashi could smell it, as he knew Naruto – the Prince, he corrected himself – could smell it. Iruka, with his inferior human nose, couldn't. Perhaps it was better that way.  
The smell of death had wafted deep into the forest a few days ago. Iruka could only smell the strong odor of the smoke and Kakashi was certain Iruka had an inkling of what had transpired. But he couldn't smell the death, so Kakashi was inclined to keep the truth from the human's knowledge. He'd beaten that into the Prince too, before they'd even gone to fetch Iruka. Humans were useful for certain things, but always their emotions got in the way of their judgment. If Iruka were to come with them, then the human would only be told enough to keep him in line. No more, no less. So far, Naruto had obeyed.

Kakashi forced his gaze away from the brunette human before his Sharingan eye could show him images of the human's future. Instead, he rubbed his jaw where Iruka had elbowed him and couldn't help the tiny smirk. Iruka hit like a girl. The silver-haired man shivered after a moment and looked up into the dark canopy of the forest sky. He had a million questions to be answered, but those who could possibly answer them were long gone now. Kyuubi-sama, Minato-sama – they were dead, among others he'd cared so deeply for. He had a mission though, a mission given to him by the late Kyuubi, and so he looked back over to the sleeping pair and wondered how he could get Naruto away from Iruka.

Kakashi couldn't help the tiny jump as he realized Iruka was watching him.

The young human could have a piercing gaze if he wanted to, Kakashi thought dryly.

"What?" Iruka asked softly, almost bitingly. Kakashi's face went blank.

"Why did Minato-sama choose you to watch over his son?" Kakashi asked just as bitingly, soft to keep from waking the boy nestled against Iruka's side. "Why didn't he choose one of us?"

"Maybe he figured a human could do a better job of raising a baby than a demon could."

"No human mother can compare to a demon one." Kakashi said, eyes narrowing as Iruka's did.

"I heard demon mothers eat their own children. How is that good parenting?"

Kakashi got to his feet as though to strike Iruka. But he didn't, not when Naruto yawned and rolled over onto his back, his tail falling against Iruka's thigh as if to hint to Kakashi what he should do. But the silver-haired demon refused to go that far, hating Iruka as much as Iruka hated him.

"We move soon," Kakashi bit out. "Get some more sleep."

Iruka just glared at him and settled back down, arm protectively around Naruto. Kakashi couldn't help but snarl and resolved to get rid of Iruka first chance he got.

Kakashi woke Naruto first, if only to drive home the fact Iruka was unimportant to the demon. Iruka said nothing after Naruto woke him, merely getting to his feet and putting all of his energy into keeping up. Unlike the demons, Iruka couldn't travel through the branches of the trees, relegated to running on the forest floor. Kakashi couldn't help but be amazed at the human's determination, but he was set on losing the human. When he was sure Prince Naruto was focused on him and not Iruka, Kakashi began to increase the pace until the forest floor below was a blur. He counted to ten, slowly, twice, before he stopped, catching the tired cub before Naruto could leap right off the branch and plummet to the ground, head cocked as he listened for Iruka. There was nothing. No calls, no scent.

The silver-haired demon grinned and began to move once more, hurrying to erase the possibility that Naruto would ask where Iruka was. With the human at the mercy of the forest, Kakashi didn't care about anything but getting Naruto to where he needed to be.


	8. Chapter 8

VIII. Tolerance

Iruka knew his legs couldn't take much more abuse, but still he pressed on, making his way through the forest floor in the same direction that the two demons had bolted off in. He was slow and he knew it. He knew he would be left behind at some point, but sheer determination kept him moving. Getting rid of Iruka wasn't going to be as easy as Kakashi believed it would be. Giving a groan, the brunette finally couldn't take any more movement and collapsed against a tree trunk, feeling pins and needles settle in his calves and thighs, imagining the lactic acid sloshing around on his muscles like liquid in a fallen bottle. He reached to rub his feet and found that somewhere, he'd lost his sandal. The sole of his foot was battered, cut and torn, leaving a trail of blood to be followed by any predator that could be lurking about. Sighing in admit of defeat, the human set his head back against the tree trunk and looked up at the canopy, trying not to cry.

He'd known there would come a day when Naruto would leave him. He'd been preparing for it since the day Naruto had learned to walk. Iruka just hadn't expected it to be today – or so soon. It was frustrating, being so weak. No matter how hard Iruka worked or how hard he trained he just wasn't as capable as a demon. He closed his eyes and tried not to scream in his anger. He had to be calm about this. When Naruto got hungry, he'd look for Iruka. Wouldn't he?

Groaning, the brunette struggled to his feet and pulled himself along, trying to catch sight of his adopted little brother and that silver-haired bastard with him. It was impossible, he knew, because demons could travel twice as fast as humans, faster, even, if they really wanted to. And it was no secret that Kakashi detested Iruka twice as much as Iruka hated Kakashi, so Kakashi would do everything in his power to get rid of Iruka.

By the time Iruka reached the water of the lake, the human was exhausted, mentally and physically. He took a few moments to drink the fresh water before sitting back, trying to decide what to do. He couldn't go back – he could only go forward. Iruka wasn't a stranger to wandering lost, but it had been a long time since he had to survive on what he could scrounge. Shivering, the brunette slowly pulled off his clothes, intending to wash the garments as he bathed, pulling is hair from its customary ponytail. He slid into the water, clothes in hand, and moved to scrub the dirt and sweat from his body.

Had he known he wasn't alone, Iruka probably never would have taken the time to stop. He probably never would have made himself so vulnerable.

But Iruka didn't know, and he set his clothes on a sun-warmed rock to dry as he moved to scrub his hair. He went under the surface of the water only once, and when he came back up, he found a man standing over his clothes, grinning. Iruka reddened.  
"Quite a pretty thing to be swimming all by herself." The man said, bending down to pick up Iruka's shirt.

"I'm not a girl." Iruka replied heatedly. "Put that down."

"Girl, boy, it doesn't matter. The point is you're in my territory." The man's lips spread into a grin, revealing sharp, pointed teeth. "And now you're mine."

Iruka froze only for a moment upon seeing those teeth and knew exactly what this creature was. He could run, but he doubted he could get very far, especially trapped within the demon's own element. Slowly, Iruka began to shift his feet, to an attempt an escape, but then the demon was before him, grabbing onto his chin.

"I don't appreciate my things disobeying me," the demon said hotly, pressing far too close to the human. "I'll have to teach you a lesson."

The demon fisted Iruka's hair, and without warning dunked the human beneath the water, holding him there while Iruka struggled. When he came up, the demon adjusted his grip for another dunk, another and another. Gasping on the return trip to the surface, Iruka shoved forward with both hands, forcing the demon back away from him. The creature howled in pain as he released Iruka from his hold and the human wasted no time in bolting for the shore. As fast as Iruka was, the demon was faster, and he caught Iruka around the middle, forcing him down onto the shore.

"What are you?" The demon hissed. "What are you, human?"

"He's my brother!"

The moment the demon looked up, Naruto kicked at his face, snapping the water demon's head back. Naruto grabbed onto Iruka, trying to pull him to safety before the demon recovered enough to attack the young kit, and suddenly Kakashi was there, between the duo and the demon.

"Iruka-nii, are you all right?" Naruto asked, tail twitching agitatedly, trying to nuzzle up to the brunette. Iruka just wrapped his arms around the boy and clung to him, trying not to tremble. He couldn't meet Kakashi's gaze, biting hard on his lower lip to keep him from crying at his own weakness. Kakashi turned then to the water demon, hands on his hips.

"He doesn't belong to you. So be a good boy and leave him the hell alone."

"And what does the great Hatake Kakashi care about some measly little human?" the demon snarled. "Didn't you swear an oath to kill every human you came across?"

Kakashi didn't reply. He just moved forward and tapped the demon in the forehead, walking past him to retrieve Iruka's clothes. On his way back, Kakashi slashed a glare at the water demon, frowning.

"This one is special," Kakashi said, "and you're just unlucky."

The demon blinked before he realized the silver-haired demon's words and began to panic. Iruka looked up in time to see the water demon convulse violently as if being electrocuted and disappear into his own lake, only steam being the marker of the demon's grave. Kakashi knelt before Iruka and Naruto then and offered Iruka his clothes. Saying nothing the brunette dressed quickly, still holding onto the blonde boy with a grip that would hurt another person. To Naruto, it just meant that Iruka needed him, and so the boy verily clung to Iruka's side, trying to comfort his big brother. Kakashi rubbed his neck and sighed.

"Just keep up, human."

Iruka opened his mouth to retort and found himself suddenly pulled onto the silver-haired demon's back. The brunette flushed a fierce red at the thought of a piggyback ride, and hid his face before Naruto could ask why he was so red.

"I don't like you," Kakashi said softly, "and you don't like me. The only thing we have in common is that little brat."

"Are you suggesting a truce?"

Kakashi just looked back at Iruka with that lone sapphire eye. Slowly Iruka nodded, flexed his fingers, and bowed his head. For Naruto's sake, he'd get along with Kakashi. Only for Naruto.


	9. Chapter 9

IX. Trust

Kakashi frowned as he watched Iruka climb the rock face he was standing on. Naruto was quietly sleeping away below them, something Iruka should have been doing. Instead he was climbing up a rock that Kakashi had taken in two leaps and for what purpose? Sighing, Kakashi reached down and pulled Iruka up the rest of the way, trying to ignore how nice the brunette's body felt against him. It wasn't fair, Kakashi thought to himself as he felt Iruka settle, felt him try to balance himself on the precarious precipice and against Kakashi. He wasn't supposed to like humanity. Humanity had destroyed everything precious to him – his lord, his best friends, his teacher – and had left him alone.

But Iruka…

There was something about Iruka that Kakashi liked. He hadn't figured it out, though, and it was driving him crazy. Iruka was the most stubborn, irritating, temperamental human he knew and yet Kakashi couldn't stop thinking about the good qualities of the human. For all of the stubbornness, there was just as much loyalty; for all the irritability, there was just as much compassion; and for all temper, there was just as much love. Certainly, though, the love wasn't for Kakashi, but Iruka was slowly changing right before his eyes. Or perhaps Kakashi was the one who was changing. Over the past few weeks of traveling, after the incident with the kappa, Kakashi had watched Iruka and Naruto interact with one another, and had tried to understand why Naruto was so attached to the human.

He couldn't see it. He couldn't see why anyone could be so attached to a singular person, especially someone as weak as Iruka. It just didn't make sense to Kakashi. But now, he too was falling for the human. There was just something about Iruka that attracted. And if the kappa was any indication of what Iruka attracted, then Kakashi needed to make his claim – if only to protect Iruka himself. After all, Kakashi did want Iruka as a mate.

Right.

And the sky would sooner turn green and monkeys would dance the can-can in perfect unison.

"Why did you come up here?" Kakashi asked as gently as he could manage. Iruka just shrugged.

"You looked lonely."

"I always look lonely."

"You shouldn't." Iruka looked up at the silver-haired demon and frowned a little bit. "It doesn't suit you."

Kakashi just shook his head and picked up the human, holding him tight as the demon made to leap from his perch. Kakashi secretly enjoyed the way that Iruka clung to him, hiding his face against his shoulder during the descent, eyes squeezed shut.

"Don't worry about me," Kakashi said, placing his fingers beneath Iruka's chin, tilting his head up. Kakashi swallowed hard, staring into those wary doe brown eyes, and fought back the need to just take this human where they stood.

"Don't worry about you? Aren't you supposed to be our protector?" Iruka asked, head tilting, frowning as he stared into Kakashi's visible blue eye. "Naruto's guide?"

Kakashi's jaw worked for a moment. "I'm used to being alone."

"You're not alone anymore, you know."

Kakashi sighed, shook his head, and managed to force a smile. "Go get some sleep. We're going to move soon. We have a long way to go and little time."

Iruka shook his head and gave a sigh, turning away from the silver-haired demon, back toward the sleeping boy. Kakashi reached out far too fast for Iruka to avoid, fingers wrapping around Iruka's bicep, and turning him around. Iruka squeaked as Kakashi's lips met his and, despite himself, let the kiss linger for a moment before Iruka shoved Kakashi away and all but ran to Naruto's side, facing away from the elder demon. Kakashi merely licked his lips and shook the static from his skin before he moved to stand guard once more, fighting not to smile.

Naruto bounded ahead of the elder pair, chasing some poor woodland creature almost up a tree. Kakashi and Iruka spent their morning walk trying to avoid each other, trying to avoid coming into even remote contact with each other. Kakashi couldn't figure it out. It wasn't that Iruka was really avoiding him. Iruka was still talking to him, but those smiles were a little forced, and he was trying to avoid being touched by the silver-haired demon. Kakashi knew he was guilty of avoiding skin contact, but he hadn't said a word to the brunette since their kiss.

So had he made a mistake in kissing Iruka? He'd never kissed a human before. Were there certain rules one had to follow when courting a human? Kisses were harmless, weren't they? They didn't mean anything, after all. A kiss was a kiss, no matter why it was given, right? Kakashi sighed and rubbed his face once Iruka moved further ahead to pick up Naruto after the brat had tripped over a root. He didn't understand humans. He couldn't understand humans. Iruka wanted him, then he didn't want him, then he wanted him again – it was like Iruka couldn't make up his mind. But then, Kakashi couldn't make up his mind either. He had the power to take Iruka against his will, but he didn't want to. He wanted Iruka to choose him because he wanted to, not because he felt obligated or had no other choice. Kakashi shivered the realization that Iruka had become important to him, almost as important – no, more important – than Naruto.

What did that mean?

"Kakashi! Kakashi, hurry up!" Iruka was calling. Kakashi jerked from his daydream, and stared right at the human, his Sharingan whirling as he looked upon the man. Bright light glowed from Iruka's very soul, a bright, untarnished light. The silver-haired demon felt his cheeks heat looking upon that pure soul, and hurried to catch up to Iruka and Naruto, fighting to cover up his Sharingan before he looked too deeply into the human's soul, deeper than he was already.

"Iruka," Kakashi began softly, trying not to blush as Iruka just looked at him, "when I kissed you did I…?"

Iruka's eyes just darkened a little bit, and he looked at Naruto's form just a few feet ahead of them. "When I was little, someone I trusted tried to hurt me, tried to force me to do something I didn't want to do."

"I won't."

Iruka looked up at Kakashi, blinking a little bit at the sound of finality in the elder's voice. The silver haired man looked down at Iruka, his blue eye darkened to sapphire, a promise glinting in that orb.

Iruka smiled at the demon and moved forward a little bit. "I know."

Blinking, Kakashi hurried to follow, giving a small smile of satisfaction. Only once did he pause to look back at the direction they came from, the barest hint of a frown forming at the scent of rot. Unable to find anything for the unmistakable scent, the silver-haired lightning demon hurried after his human and Prince, wondering why he still felt a cold fist settling in his gut.


	10. Chapter 10

X. Meeting

Mizuki licked the blood from his fingers, staring at the body of the kappa he'd just destroyed. So the stupid creature had seen Iruka, Mizuki's Iruka, in the company of some lightning demon and the Kyuubi's brat, and had let them get away. Not only that, the little bastard had tried to take Iruka for himself. That, simply, couldn't be, so Mizuki had taken care of the kappa and had let the humans following him sate their bloodlust on the nymphs and other tree spirits while Mizuki looked for the direction that the trio had moved off in.

He'd been lucky when he found Iruka's blood on the trail, even as dry as it was. It just proved he'd chosen the right direction to move in, and now he needed to choose right again. He wanted to pick up the pace, but his companions were only human, and he needed them should he happen upon a group heading for the Exodus. The last thing he needed was to come upon a group of armed demons heading for freedom and recognizing him as tainted.

"Mizuki?"

The silver-blonde haired demon looked over at the human questioning him so and merely pointed in a direction, lips curling into a horrible grin. The grin was matched by the hunter's own, and the call to move out was given.

Naruto darted ahead of his two guardians, grinning from ear to ear as he chased down the sparrow. He could hear Iruka calling him, warning him not to get too far ahead, but he ignored his brother and kept after the sparrow. He'd always be able to find his way back to his brother and Kakashi, just like Kakashi would be able to find him. So Naruto continued to leap ahead, grinning as he leapt up to catch the bird, trying to get it to stay still long enough for him to actually touch the feathers. Only Naruto missed and came crashing down, yelping as he landed on a warm body that didn't belong to Iruka or Kakashi. The young kitsune rolled off the boy he'd landed on, crouching on all fours as he studied the black-haired boy, swallowing as he reached out to touch his face. His hand was slapped away, the boy glaring at him as he sat up, black eyes boring into electric blue.

"You're okay then?" Naruto asked softly.

"You landed on me, you stupid dobe!"

"My name is Naruto not 'dobe'!"

"Dobe, dobe, dobe!"

Naruto growled and launched himself at the other boy, tackling him down. The black-haired boy rolled with him, both fighting in that playful wrestling that was bound to get dangerous, both younglings growling and hissing at each other amidst the name-calling. And then they were pulled apart by strong hands, both held up by the scruff to stare into menacing yellow eyes. The shark demon grinned at both, and had the black-haired boy a tail it would've been between his legs like Naruto's was.

"Now what's all this about?" The shark demon questioned the boys. Both younglings trembled in that hold until a pale hand settled on the blue-skinned man's shoulder. Gently, the boys were set on their feet, instinctively huddling together under the piercing red gaze of the new arrival, the black-haired man looking disappointedly at the miniature version of himself.

"Sasuke-"

"He started it!" The black haired boy burst out, pointing at Naruto. "It's his fault!"

"What?" Naruto shouted back. "No it's not!"

"Is too!"

"Is not!"

"Itachi? Is that you?"

Both boys whirled to look up at Kakashi and Iruka, the smaller of the pair prudently hiding behind the lightning demon all the while glaring at Naruto in severe disappointment. The red-eyed demon blinked, squinting just a little at Kakashi's face.

"Hatake Kakashi… I heard you'd gotten left behind." The one called Itachi said softly.

"I stayed behind. I needed to find someone."

Red eyes flicked to the human standing behind him, but Kakashi shook his head. "Then the boy?"

"The boy."

Itachi looked down at Naruto, frowning slightly. Naruto only glared back at him, tail curled around his leg in a betrayal of his fear. Those red eyes blinked once and then looked away from the blonde boy to the black-haired boy beside him. "Sasuke, behave yourself."

"But-"

"Behave." Itachi looked up then at the lightning demon, head canting. "You're welcome to join us."

Kakashi took Iruka's hand to lead him down to the other pair of adults, letting him go when Iruka moved toward Naruto, taking hold of the blonde boy's hand to pull him close. Naruto just glared at Sasuke as he clung to Iruka, and Sasuke glared back, clinging to Itachi.

"Are you heading to the Exodus?"

Kakashi nodded slowly. "Are you and Kisame heading there?"

"We're the last to arrive, as far as we know." Kisame the shark-demon replied. "I found Itachi and Sasuke by luck."

"Hunters wiped out the Uchiha clan," Itachi said, "except for myself and Sasuke, since Kisame was there to rescue us. Madara had gone on ahead to make sure the path was clear for us and his brother died to protect us."

Iruka shivered. "Everyone is dead?"

"See, little human," Kisame said, "the hunters don't want us going to the Exodus because that'll take away all their prey. But the odd thing is no hunter has ever found the Uchiha compound without help from an Uchiha."

"So someone helped them into the compound to kill the clan." Kakashi mused. "And Kirigakure?"

"No Uchiha helped the hunters in. It was another demon entirely. And Kirigakure was completely annihilated. Zabuza and Haku got most of the youngsters out, and Orochimaru and Kimimaru made it out. Tsunade and Jiraya have their hands full with just the wounded. The others are trying to find survivors of the other massacres, but if they haven't made it to the Exodus by now, they're not coming."

"So, in all, how many of us are left?"

"Including us?" Kisame shrugged. "Maybe a thousand, a little less. Mostly children."

The weight of that statement was heavy on the adults, even Iruka, but the boys ignored the words in favour of making faces at each other, finally letting go of their respective adults to romp with each other, playing as children will do. Kakashi took Iruka's hand and held it tight, sighing softly.

"Naruto will lead us out of here," Kakashi said softly. "He is Kyuubi's son."

Itachi looked to the lightning demon and then to the boy playing with Sasuke. "He's young still."

"More fire in him than there ever was in his dad," Kisame replied, getting a grunt in reply from Kakashi. "And you're bringing a human with you?"

Iruka reddened at being mentioned, but Kisame's gush of air from Itachi's fist made the blush lessen just a little.

"Don't mind him," Itachi said softly. "Humans have a bad reputation among demons."

"So I noticed." Iruka replied just as softly, moving just a little bit closer to Kakashi. They walked together for days, it seemed like, and Iruka learned more about demons than he ever would have had he stayed in the village. At night, he curled close to Kakashi, trembling against him, cold, and Kakashi just held him close to keep him warm. When it was time to part ways, Iruka took both Itachi's and Kisame's hands in a friendly hold before stepping aside to let Kakashi say his own farewells.

Naruto peeked over the fallen tree he and Sasuke were hiding behind at the adults, before turning back to his friend, holding up his hand, fingers curled over so his pinky finger was raised. Grinning, the kitsune kit canted his head at the Uchiha boy.

"I'll see you there, and we'll go together?"

Sasuke grinned back, hooking his finger around Naruto's. "Promise."

"Sasuke!"

"Coming!" The black-haired boy threw his arms around Naruto in a hug. "Don't forget me."

"Can't forget you," Naruto said, returning the hug.

Together, he and Sasuke emerged from their hiding spot and hurried to their respective adults, both staring back at each other as they parted ways. Naruto only lifted his pinkie finger and grinned, getting a grin in return. Iruka took Naruto's hand then and held him tight, following Kakashi on their own path.


	11. Chapter 11

XI. Fear

Kakashi picked up their pace significantly over the next few days, so much that Iruka was often carried by the silver-haired demon when he couldn't keep up. They rested only when it was safe to, because the trees kept telling Naruto it wasn't safe to stop. They couldn't stop until they'd crossed the river, the trees said, because only demons could cross the river. Humans would be trapped on the other side. Often, Kakashi carried both Iruka and Naruto when the boy was too tired to keep moving, his pace a ground eating trot. Iruka did his best to keep up when Kakashi couldn't carry him, letting the elder's urgency full his blood until all he could think of was to keep moving.

Something bad was behind them. That was all Iruka needed to know, and so he kept moving. He did his best to keep his fear from infecting Naruto, smiling to keep the boy happy. It was all he could do to keep Naruto from asking why Iruka smelled like fear. It took just as much will power to keep Kakashi from asking as well. Finally, one particularly warm night, Kakashi called an early rest, and moved to make the first fire in a long while. Iruka settled down to rub his feet and cuddle Naruto, waiting for Kakashi to return. The silver-haired demon had gone to inspect the perimeter of their chosen resting place, leaving Iruka and Naruto together.

The brunette stroked the boy's hair, smiling as Naruto pressed his cheek further against his thigh. They were almost there, almost to this Exodus, and then they would be gone from here, away from all the danger.

Iruka shivered as the night seemed to grow darker. The orange flames flickered shadows against his face, and Iruka could only pull Naruto up into his lap to try and keep warm. At least, that was what he told himself. He tried to keep his fear from waking up his little brother, knowing if Naruto woke up cranky, he'd never really hear the end of it. He needed his sleep as well, knowing the hardest part of their run was coming up. A few more days at the most, and then they'd be free.

The wind picked up and Iruka huddled closer to the small body in his lap, bending his head down and closing his eyes, praying that their protector came back soon. Embers flared up even as the fire died, giving Iruka's heart a good romp around his ribcage. Even as young as he was, his heart should never gallop that fast. Immersed in darkness, Iruka looked out into the shadows of the trees and slivers of moonlight, waiting for Kakashi to appear. He sensed movement, shifted Naruto off his lap and carefully placed him in between the roots of the tree they huddled against. If something was going to kill him, better him alone than Naruto, too. Iruka shifted and rose to his feet, pressing his back against the tree trunk.

Maybe whatever was out there wasn't looking for him.

When the night settled back into its own quiet, Iruka relaxed, shaking his head at his own foolishness. Kakashi would protect them even if he wasn't seen.

Somewhere, out there, a branch snapped.

Iruka moved away from the tree, bending just a little to pick up a smoldering stick. It wasn't a weapon he would've liked, but with what little afforded to him… well, it just might be a frisky squirrel. Right?

"Kakashi?" Iruka called softly, moving closer to the darkness. "Kakashi, is that you?"

Silence.

Iruka glanced back at the tree where Naruto lay and swallowed, moving further out into the darkness, clutching to his stick. Shivering, Iruka settled into an easy stance with his back to his charge and let his eyes adjust to the dark. Something silver flashed by in his peripheral, and Iruka whirled, stick swinging to defend himself. But there was nothing, only his heart going a mile a minute, fighting not to shake.

"Kakashi! This isn't funny!"

Fingers brushed against his neck, nails scraping against skin. Iruka whirled, following those fingers, unable to see who was responsible for such contact. There was nothing, no soul nearby except for him and Naruto. Iruka was panicking, trying to find their protector, having half a mind to scream for the young kit sleeping hidden away. Then he heard it, the soft footfalls, the chorus of voices. Perhaps this was part of the Exo-

Iruka's hope froze in his heart.

Laughter bubbled up from the ring of hunters.

Laughter came from the man leading them.

Iruka took a step back and suddenly he was caught in place, fingers curling around his arm, keeping him still. Mizuki's face was suddenly too close to his, lips brushing over his own.

"Hello, Iruka," Mizuki hissed. "I've missed you."

"Get the hell away from me!" Iruka cried, struggling against the demon's grip. Mizuki's hand cracked across Iruka's face, stunning him.

"Don't take that tone with me, Iruka. Now, where are your friends?"

"What friends?"

Mizuki shook the human, snarling, face twisting into an evil mask. "Don't play with me, Iruka!"

Iruka's eyes narrowed, pulling back as far as he could go, even if he was still held fast. "I don't know where they are. We were separated two days back and I haven't found them."

Mizuki's face twisted. "Then you just bought yourself a one way ticket to the Exodus, 'Ruka. A pure soul like you will be certain to get in."

The silver-haired demon's hand cracked across Iruka's face, sending the human into darkness. He hauled the young human up over his shoulder, peering into the darkness for any signs of life. Mizuki believed he saw some sort of movement, but a further examination did not bring up any fruitful efforts. Still, Mizuki had what he wanted now, so all he had to do was lead his companions to the Exodus and wipe out the rest of the demonic population.

It was a beautiful ending to this opera.


	12. Chapter 12

XII. Rescue

Kakashi returned closer to dawn, frowning when he saw Naruto all by himself, watching the boy frantically look for something. No, not something. Someone. Kakashi dropped from his branch and walked as calmly as he could toward the boy. Naruto whirled as soon as he scented something familiar and stared at Kakashi with wide sapphire eyes.

"Where's Iruka?" Kakashi asked softly.

"I don't know! He was here when I went to sleep but not when I woke up! And there are so many strange smells and I can't tell what direction he was taken!"

Kakashi fought down the twitch. "Are you sure he was taken?"

Naruto slashed a glare at the elder demon. "He would never just get up and leave. He loves us too much."

The admission from the child alone lifted Kakashi's heart. But he shook his head and moved forward, taking hold of Naruto's shoulders, falling to one knee to be eye level in front of the young Prince.

"I'll get Iruka. Naruto, I need you to head north. Do not stop for anything."

"I can rescue Iruka too!"

"No." Kakashi said a little forcefully. "I need you to head north. I need you to get to Sasuke. The people that have Iruka are dangerous."

Naruto pouted a little bit. "Hunters, I smelled them. And someone else."

Kakashi pet at the blonde strands falling before Naruto's eyes. "It's that someone else for which I need you to run."

"But…"

Kakashi shook his head, standing up, petting the boy's head. "Not this time. I need you safe. If you got hurt, Iruka would be upset."

It was those words that gave a measure of understanding to the boy's electric blue eyes. Kakashi released Naruto and gave the boy directions to where he needed to go. Once the Prince had disappeared from his sight, Kakashi lifted his hand to uncover his Sharingan, blinking as it adjusted to the light of the world. Slowly, Kakashi pivoted on his heel, searching for Iruka's soul. He found it, surrounded by tainted spirits of humans, and one blackened soul belonging to a demon. That black soul was far too close to Iruka's pure one, far too close for Kakashi's liking. Kakashi shook himself, felt electricity crackle against his skin.  
If there was any time left to claim Iruka as his, now was the time to do it. The lightning demon tamped his foot down to leap into the branches, becoming a shadow with the need to kill.

Mizuki stroked the bruise on Iruka's face, snarling when the human jerked his head away. Outside the tent, he could hear the hunters muttering. Of course they were upset. They wanted to kill demons, not wait around while their guide claimed what he wanted. But he couldn't claim Iruka just yet. Someone else, some other demon, had put a temporary claim on the brunette and Mizuki needed to break through that temporary claim to place his own. Then he could take Iruka, break Iruka, make Iruka his. Mizuki scraped his nails along the expanse of Iruka's throat, giving him silent warning.

"Why did you run from me, Iruka?" Mizuki whispered against the human's ear. "All I have ever done was love you."

"What you did wasn't out of love," Iruka spat back, struggling against the ropes binding him to the center post of the tent. "What you did was out of lust."

"Lust, love. There's not much of a difference once you get down to it."

"Get away from me."

Mizuki just laughed, fingers wrapping hard around Iruka's throat. The water demon leaned in closer, just enough so that their lips brushed together in faux kisses. "You don't have a choice, my love."

Iruka struggled against the ropes, against Mizuki, but there was nothing he could do. The warmth that had spread in his body was quickly being replaced by frigid ice, his blood slowing in his veins. He felt as though he was drowning, dying, suffocating against the fluid filling his lungs. Iruka didn't want this. He didn't want to die! He didn't want to belong to Mizuki! He wanted Kakashi! Hot fire lanced through him, burning away the ice and the water drowning him, encasing him within a warmth that he was sure would kill him quicker than if he were to drown in Mizuki's water. But that fire simply warmed him enough to keep the ice at bay, to give him air to breathe, and thus fight away Mizuki's desire that wanted to cloud his mind.

Iruka focused on Kakashi, focused on the demon's – no. Man's – voice, his scent, his own kind of warmth. He concentrated on the tiny sparks of electricity that sometimes fell from Kakashi's skin and hair, the way his visible blue eye changed emotions when his face refused to betray what he felt. He focused on that Sharingan eye, that strange red and black orb that always gave him the feeling that it was looking into his very soul. He focused on everything that was Kakashi, even as Mizuki's hands stroked along his skin, baring everything Iruka had tried to hide to his eyes. He ignored the way fingers danced along the skin of his stomach and chest, trailing down, always down. He ignored the way his blood began to burn as Mizuki worked to rile him, focusing on Kakashi's scent. He imagined he could smell it, that strange, pleasing scent of lightning and fresh rain. He imagined he smelled burning flesh and blood and wished what his brain made him imagine could be true.

He felt Mizuki's breath hitch against his throat and slowly he opened his eyes.

Relief flooded through Iruka's body, pure joy at seeing Kakashi standing there, eyes as wild as his hair, electricity jumping from his skin, blood spatter making his skin seem even paler. Mizuki's fingers froze on Iruka's skin. His face twisted into a horrible snarl.

"Sharingan no Kakashi, why am I not surprised?" Mizuki hissed, hand moving for Iruka's throat. Kakashi's hand shot out, deceptively thin fingers wrapping around the water demon's wrist in a vice hold. Mizuki snarled. Kakashi snarled louder.

"Get your filthy hands away from him." Kakashi ordered, his voice brooking no room for argument. Mizuki's face twisted into a hideous mask as he lunged away from Iruka toward Kakashi, the hand not held in the vice grip leading for the silver-haired demon's throat. Both went down, the tent collapsing about the three of them. Even blinded, Iruka could sense the demons fighting, could feel the heat of lightning and the frigid water. Then the combative pair pulled the fabric of the tent away from him, letting the brunette see what had taken place outside.

Bodies lay everywhere, some burned to blackened husks, some torn to pieces. Blood pooled in dirt, haloing heads whose eyes stared toward the sky. Iruka shuddered and began to writhe against his bonds, all the while trying to find his rescuer and his opponent.

Thunder cracked loud above his head, heralding the beginnings of a storm. Stinging rain began to fall a moment later, bruising Iruka's skin. He wanted to scream for Kakashi, but couldn't find his voice. Lightning illuminated the area surrounding him, and for the briefest moment, he saw the battling demons. Kakashi's hand was covered in lightning, the silver-haired demon rushing in low for the kill. Mizuki was encased in a shield of water, designed to stagnate the lightning long enough for him to either escape or counterattack. Iruka's eyes widened in alarm as Kakashi was knocked back, sliding in the mud and fetching up hard against a boulder. Dazed, the lightning demon didn't see Mizuki's water shield change to a wicked sword, and by the time he did see, it was far too late for him to dodge.

Iruka screamed.

Thunder crashed, a deafening drum roll.

Earth exploded around the demons, obscuring them from view.

For a long moment everything was still, all sound ceasing as if the world itself was holding its breath. And then a rumble began, a roar escaping from the earth-cloud, pulsing electricity driving the earth out along with the water, Mizuki's water sword nothing once tainted with mud. Kakashi broke away, only hearing Mizuki slam headlong into the same boulder Kakashi had hit as he ran for Iruka.

Freed, Iruka flung his arms around Kakashi's shoulders, burying his face in his chest as the silver-haired demon hugged him tight. Not a word was spoken as Kakashi lifted the human into his arms, not bothering to glance back as he bounded off into the woods, nearly flying at the speed Kakashi seemed to be going. It was a frantic pace and Iruka didn't question it, eyes closed tight. When they stopped, it was in a clearing, shielded from the pounding rain, lit only by quick flashes of lightning. Kakashi set Iruka down against a tree trunk and stared at him, red and blue eyes staring into doe brown. Iruka opened his mouth to speak, to say something, anything, to get Kakashi to stop staring at him. Anything he was about to say was suddenly forgotten when Kakashi's tongue forced its way into his mouth and heat consumed Iruka's very soul.


	13. Chapter 13

XIII. Confession

Iruka couldn't think – he just felt and moved. Kakashi was hot against his skin, the silver-haired demon's mouth on his neck, making wet trails up the tanned expanse to his ear. Iruka couldn't help the mewls that escaped him at the feel of forming bruises on his throat and shoulders. The grasses under their feet were littered with articles of their clothes, and still more joined those already there. Kakashi slowly eased Iruka to the ground, slowly eased between the human's legs, mouth on his throat as he pushed Iruka back. The human wrapped his arms around the silver-haired demon's shoulders, holding on tightly even as he felt heat coil in his abdomen from Kakashi's kisses and bites alone. He felt pressure against his mind each time a kiss was pressed to his forehead, and Iruka couldn't help but squirm, tossing his head back away from Kakashi and gasping for air.

Kakashi's fingers dug into Iruka's thighs, massaging more so than trying to get the limbs to part, already eased between them anyway. At this point, Kakashi knew Iruka would be amicable to whatever he wanted, so he was just going to enjoy the tastes and sounds of his mate, nuzzling Iruka's chest, tongue lapping at a hardening nub as his thumb and forefinger teased the other. Iruka's nails dug into his shoulders, a cry escaping him as Kakashi's teeth sank into the nipple his mouth was teasing, hips arching up against the demon's own. Kakashi could only purr, pulling away from the brunette's chest to crush their mouths together, coaxing him to open up to him. The lightning demon slipped his tongue into his lover's mouth and teased long enough to get Iruka riled. Wisely, he retreated before Iruka could bite off his tongue, and began to trail his own down Iruka's neck.

"Kakashi…" Iruka whimpered. "Enough…! We have to catch up to Naruto!"

"We will. We will." Kakashi whispered. "Just feel for now, Iruka."

Kakashi bit into Iruka's shoulder then, only to cover up the feel of his fingers pushing inside of Iruka's body. He felt the smaller form beneath him tense when he finally felt the two digits within him, heard Iruka cry out in pain.

"Am I hurting you?"

Iruka shook his head, squirming. "I've never…"

"I know." Kakashi said softly. "I'll be gentle with you."

Iruka made a noise and shifted just a little bit, spreading his legs a bit wider to get more comfortable. "You don't have to."

Kakashi just looked into Iruka's eyes and sighed with a smile. "I want to. I want to erase what he did to you."

Iruka just shook his head, gasping and writhing as Kakashi began to move his wrist, crooking his fingers to run the pads against the warm inner walls, scissoring his fingers to stretch that tight muscle. No more words were spoken as Kakashi worked to make this experience as perfect as possible for his beloved human. He was tight, tighter than Kakashi could ever imagine, Iruka's insides practically on fire around his fingers. Iruka was writhing, arching up against those moving digits, his fingers scoring the earth beneath them. Kakashi was just doing his best not to come right there, fighting to hold himself back.

Finally, Iruka gasped out three words that had Kakashi pulling his fingers out, spreading Iruka's legs wide open, and thrusting inside without even giving the human warning. Iruka arched and cried out, hands flying to the demon's shoulders to clutch as Kakashi began to move, thrusting deep into Iruka and pulling out just to repeat the motions. He pulled Iruka onto him then, sitting back on his heels, then just sitting, panting as he let Iruka ride him. The brunette tossed his head back then, arms wrapped around Kakashi's shoulders, riding the demon harder and harder, feeling his muscles loosen and contract, feeling his insides become bruised with each thrust. Iruka just kept making noise, clinging to his lover, finally unable to hold his head up anymore. So he let it fall forward, forehead falling against Kakashi's shoulder, their sweat and other fluids mingling, his breath both warming and cooling the lightning demon's skin with each pant.

Then Iruka shrieked as Kakashi's cock buried deep inside him at that perfect angle, sending sparks of pleasure straight up his spine to his brain, making his muscles tighten with each consecutive thrust, until Iruka's body couldn't take any more abuse. Kakashi's hand wrapping around Iruka's straining, dripping cock ended it all.

Lights exploded behind Iruka's eyes as he fought not to scream and ended up screaming anyway, body clamping down around Kakashi's own aching need, the demon giving a cry of his own as his cock was massaged by contracting muscles, feeling his own seed push deep into Iruka, deeper than his own cock could even reach. Iruka's own come made a sticky mess between them, but at this point, Kakashi didn't care, easing back off his legs, easing Iruka down with him and trying not to thrust his softening member into that abused hole. Iruka shivered as he lay on top of Kakashi, even with Kakashi's arms wrapped around him to keep him warm. Slowly, the lightning demon slipped out of his lover's body, purring as he felt liquid dribble onto his skin.

Iruka yawned, nuzzling Kakashi's neck as he began to fall asleep, leaving the lightning demon stroking his shoulder blades comfortingly. Kakashi felt warm, content, and felt a gentle fire smoldering in his chest, singing the same song to the fire smoldering in Iruka's belly.

Kakashi shivered in pure joy as he realized the truth, as he realized why Iruka had begun to sing to him so sweetly. Like always calls to like, and Iruka was much more like Kakashi than the human realized. The phoenix fire gently burning between them would be a clear signal to anyone looking, and Naruto's big brother would be a beacon to all those wanting to join the Exodus.

"No sleeping yet, Iruka," Kakashi whispered softly, kissing the brunette's hair. "We have to catch up to Naruto now."


	14. Chapter 14

XIV. Exodus

Naruto chewed on his thumbnail, holding onto Sasuke's hand as he waited anxiously for Kakashi and Iruka to show up. Already, the demons in attendance were beginning to become restless, whispering amongst each other, doubting. If they waited any longer, they would begin to leave, taking their chances amongst humans rather than among their own kind. Sasuke tugged on Naruto's hand then, tilting his head toward three demons Itachi had introduced him to – Tsunade, Orochimaru, and Jiraya, the three Sannin. They were the oldest and wisest of the demons, and everyone would do as they said without question. Tsunade moved forward and knelt before Naruto, a hand on the boy's shoulder.

"You must lead us now, Naruto-kun. There's no more time."

Naruto shuddered. "But… Kakashi… and Iruka…"

Tsunade closed her eyes for a long moment, a sigh escaping her when she reopened her eyes. "We can't wait any longer."

Naruto bowed his head, feeling tears prick at his eyes. He couldn't leave without Kakashi and Iruka. He just couldn't. He loved Iruka too much to leave him behind and he really, really liked Kakashi. But now he had to make a choice. It wasn't one he really wanted to make – two lives in exchange for hundreds.

The blonde boy looked up at the woman, finally giving a shudder and nod. "Alright… show me what I need to do."

Tsunade reached out to put a hand on Naruto's shoulder, gently brushing the tears away. She took his free hand and Sasuke released him so he could follow the three Sannin up to the altar. Tsunade set him on the pedestal, carefully instructing the boy on how to open the doorway to begin the Exodus.

Naruto shivered, closing his eyes tight as he felt the tendrils of power curling around his body. It was unfamiliar power, much too strong for his small body, but he simply clenched his fingers into fists and began to recite the words whispered into his ear. Everyone standing in the courtyard of this old temple hushed, watching the Kyuubi's son create their safe haven. Not one person breathed as the gateway began to shimmer into existence, not even those who had doubted, those who had begun to speak of returning to the human world to try and survive.

Naruto's tail whipped excitedly from side to side, that small body charged with the energy needed to continue this venture. His voice slowly grew in volume and intensity until he was all but screaming, heads bowing behind him to pray.

Then all went silent.

Naruto felt something warm come around him and found Itachi wrapping his coat around him, the blonde boy giving a shaky smile. Itachi only shifted, helped the boy up, and set him beside Sasuke before he and Kisame disappeared into the shimmering portal. Gasps went up from the crowd, for the pair had simply vanished, leaving no trace of where they had gone. Sasuke clung to Naruto as Naruto clung to Sasuke, tense and waiting.

Then Kisame reappeared and said simply, "It's paradise."

He stood beside the boys as the demons began to move, slipping into the shimmering portal in pairs and trios, the shimmering veil becoming more solid as more and more passed through. It showed the other side, the rolling fields, the massive rivers and the tiny streams, the animals grazing carelessly, and the demons that had crossed over. Paradise, a place free from any sort of hatred, a place so pristine that none who lived there now would dare to destroy its purity.

Naruto shivered as he watched the three Sannin disappear into the veil, eyes locked on the back of a small pale boy who clung to Orochimaru's hand. He watched the one called Zabuza carry a small boy named Haku through the veil and watched as the very last demon crossed the line. Still he waited, back now turned to the veil, feeling Sasuke growing anxious. So he let Sasuke go, felt the hesitancy coming from the darker boy.

"I'll follow. I want to wait a little longer."

Sasuke squeezed Naruto's hand before he let go. "Don't make me come back after you."

Naruto grinned. "Promise."

He watched Sasuke cross into Paradise before he turned his eyes back to the entrance of the destroyed temple. He felt a hand on his shoulder then and looked up into the red and black eyes of Uchiha Madara. The man said nothing, just gave the boy's shoulder a squeeze, and followed his descendant into the veil. Naruto stood alone on the altar, waiting.

"Naruto!"

Naruto's face split into a grin as he saw them, as he saw Kakashi bounding toward him, Iruka in his arms. He rushed to meet them, jumping into his big brother's arms as soon as he had the chance to, nuzzling the man's neck. He was crying, but he didn't care, feeling Iruka nearly squeeze him to death in the hug. Kakashi knelt beside them, hugging them both before he began to tug them to their feet.

"Come on," Kakashi said softly, "let's go."

The three rose, Naruto talking excitedly about the event the elder pair had missed, moving quickly for the portal. Kakashi paused at the very precipice, turning back to glare down at the wounded demon dragging himself up the final step.

"You can't take him," Mizuki gasped out, "he's mine."

Iruka felt Kakashi's arm wrap around his shoulders and turn him around, both standing in the shimmering veil. He pressed close to the lightning demon, watching Mizuki's eyes widen in abject horror as Kakashi placed a hand against Iruka's belly, gently walking them backwards through the veil.

"Mizuki," Kakashi began softly, "you traded everything you were for selfish reasons. You tried to destroy precious life. Now give yours, so that ours may live in peace."

Mizuki let out a scream of primal rage and denial as the shimmering veil closed behind Kakashi and Iruka, sealing the demon out of the Paradise. He died with hatred in his heart, eyes forever locked on the hand on Iruka's stomach, knowing what Kakashi had meant in his words.

For life to live, lives must be given in return.

The road to Paradise is fraught with sadness, but for those who persevere, Paradise will open a newer, better world, where sadness is only a memory.

Owari


End file.
